Hello, all! Silly Lilly Malvina here! Yes, this is my first post on this account, but it is not my first fanfiction in the least. I'm quite experienced with the process and with this site as well. However, this is the first Klaine I've ever published. I do not own Glee or its affiliates, and I hope you'll leave feedback! Enjoy!
About a dozen teenagers stand outside of William McKinley High School in the early hours of the morning one cold Saturday in January. Three in the morning to be exact. Despite being bundled in sweats and coats - and a few even wrapped in blankets - they are all shivering and shaking in the cold. Bags sit at their feet filled to the extreme, and finally a school bus pulls up, causing a round of cheers from the teenagers. There is only one reasonable explanation for the scene at hand.
Show choir season has begun.
"Okay, kiddos, on the bus!" calls the cheerful voice of Shannon Beiste, who is seated in the driver's seat of the cheese wagon. "Heat's on."
The teenagers gather their things and race to get into the warm bus and out of the snow. Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson are the last two to get on the bus, having two large bags, a smaller bag, and a heavy blanket to gather. Kurt, ever prepared, had coordinated with Miss Pillsbury to gather an emergency kit. He had collected bandages, ankle and wrist wraps, and pain killers, leaving various antiseptic materials and unmentionable feminine products for the guidance counselor to obtain. When the two finally make it up the awkward steps, Coach Beiste slams the doors shut, effectively trapping the group in a bubble of warmth.
"There's a few seats," Blaine says, motioning to a small gap between Mercedes and Quinn flipping through a fashion magazine and Tina and Mike dozing together.
The boys place their bags in one of the empty seats and occupy another, wrapping the blanket around themselves and snuggling together.
"I'm so excited," Kurt says softly, squeezing his boyfriend's fingers beneath the blanket. "It's our first invitational together with the New Directions."
Blaine grins affectionately. "The first of many."
"Today is going to be amazing."
"Because we're spending it together."
Kurt grins widely and shifts towards Blaine, who meets him with an energetic kiss.
"No PDA on the bus!" Mercedes says, popping up over the back of the seat and mock-glaring at her best friend and his love. "That's right, I'm watching you, pretty boys."
"Oh, you're just uptight because your boyfriend isn't here and someone looks like hot country sin in flannel," Kurt remarks, rolling his eyes and smirking at the diva.
Blaine narrows his eyes slightly, but has to agree with his boyfriend, despite the fact that said boyfriend was obviously checkout out another man. "The sooner you listen to him the better. I learned that the hard way."
Mercedes gives a smirk. "Well you still have a lot to learn. Just keep your pretty boy kisses to a minimum, we don't need to see that, especially now that we all know that you've done things. In fact -" - she raises her voice enough to break through the dozing of the various passengers - "- all sexually active couples need to keep the macking on each other to a minimum."
Mr. Schue gives a pointed look from the front of the bus. "No need to be so crass, Mercedes, but you have a point. Try to control your urges and keep the PDA to a minimum."
Kurt and Blaine both tinge pink and slide down in their seat, resuming their snuggling after a moment. The bus ride will be long, but the day will be a good one, because it will be spent together.
Hours later, Kurt is being shaken awake by Sugar, who is repeating, "Wake up!" in a sing-song, off key voice.
"Save your voice," reminds Rory, who is diagonal to Kurt. "You don't want to pique before the show."
'Thank you,' mouths Kurt when Sugar turns away.
Rory grins and tips an imaginary hat.
Kurt returns a smile and then turns to his boyfriend, who is still asleep on his shoulder. "Wake up, Blaine."
Blaine stirs slightly, then relaxes again, his breathing slow and even.
"Wake up, honey, we're almost there," Kurt murmurs softly. "Wake up, Blainey."
"Hmm?" The other boy stirs again, then sighs heavily, his lips puckering slightly.
The conscious boy glances around, and when he finds no one is paying attention, he leans forward to capture his boyfriend's lips with his own, effectively waking him.
"Good morning to you, too," Blaine murmurs sleepily, eyes opening slowly and a slow smile stretching across his face. "We there?"
"Almost," Kurt says, returning the smile.
From the front of the bus, Mr. Schue clears his throat. "Okay, guys, when we get there a representative from the host school will meet us and take us where we need to be, then we'll go over the game plan, alright?"
Agreements chorus throughout the bus, and a moment later, they pull into the host school's parking lot. Not a moment later there is a rapping on the door of the bus, and Coach Beiste opens the door.
A slight girl with huge green eyes and strawberry blonde curls enters, wearing a shy grin on her face. "Hello, I'm Angelique Greene, your hostess. Before I take you to your room I'm going to stamp your wrist so you'll be free to come and go between the dressing areas and the auditorium." She brandishes what appears to be - and, at close inspection, is - a child's ink stamp. Soon, everyone on the bus has a pink peace sign on their wrist.
A few moments and a long walk through the halls of the host school later, the hostess is opening a door which has a large poster board reading 'WMHS NEW DIRECTIONS' taped to it. Inside it is revealed to be a classroom with all of the desks pushed to the sides of room, a single full length mirror, and a CD player.
"This is your dressing room slash lounge area," Angelique Greene says, sweeping a slender arm. "Feel free to move the desks around if you need to, and there are plugs on the back wall for anything you need. Your things will be safe here, because we have monitors who watch the halls. Your warm up time is one-thirty and your performance time is two. I'll meet you here to take you to each and if you need anything before that time just find anyone with an orange name tag and they can help you. Have a nice day."
As quickly as she appeared, the hostess is gone. Mr. Schue is the first to break the stunned silence. "She seems excited. And we all should be. Okay, have a seat, I want to go over a few things before we go to breakfast."
Everyone takes seats in the floor or on desktops, looking expectantly to their director.
"Okay, first of all, remember who you represent, and be on your best behavior. Second, have fun and meet people. Mingle with competitors. This isn't a major competition, so we can let loose and have fun. Strike a new pose, make a new face, find a way to make the performance more lively. This is the time to experiment and have fun. Finally, meet at twelve here so we can go have lunch as a group, then be dressed and ready to go by one-fifteen. We don't want any stragglers or wardrobe malfunctions before warm up. Everybody clear?"
Various responses are called, but they are all of the same nature. There is an unspoken agreement between all of the teenagers - make Mr. Schue proud.
The morning passes with many laughs and new acquaintances made. Many excellent groups are seen and many interesting characters are met. From a contortionist to a gymnast, and even a former circus performer, the people they meet are all interesting and unique in their own ways. Kurt and Blaine find themselves quite popular in the mix of people. Kurt for his unique vocal range, Blaine for his resemblance to a certain Lord of the Rings character, and the pair for their refusal to be anywhere without the other.
At lunch they hold hands under the table in the presence of their friends, and then disappear to find an abandoned area to have some alone time away from their growing fan base. They find an empty hallway and sink down against a wall, giggling and leaning on one another.
"You have fan girls," Kurt says, eyes damp from laughing so hard. "I can't get the look that one girl had out of my head when she saw our hands."
"The fifth or sixth one?" Blaine says, referring to the slew of girls who had received the shock of his sexuality after hitting on him.
"The fifth one - you know, the one who looked like she was watching an animal planet birthing special?"
The boys laugh harder at the comparison, and soon tears stream down both faces.
"I don't think I've ever had so much fun in my life," Blaine says eventually, calming down enough to speak clearly. "I'm glad it's you I'm with."
Kurt smiles lovingly. "I'm glad it's you I'm with, too. This has got to be the best experience I've ever had in a high school."
Blaine raises an eyebrow. "I thought our first kiss might have held that position." But his playful grin alerts his boyfriend that he is simply joking.
"Second best," the other corrects, leaning forward and nuzzling his love's nose. "Happy?"
Blaine's grin softens and his eyes relax, growing serious. He places a hand on Kurt's cheek and strokes the soft skin tenderly. "I'm very happy."
Kurt leans into his boyfriend's touch, smiling softly. "Me too. I love you."
"I love you," the other breathes, closing the distance between the two lovers.
Their kiss begins tenderly, with the light touches of lips and the mingling of warm breath. Soon, the kisses grow teasing, and finally they border on passionate. The two sit in a close embrace, separating only to catch breath before resuming the lip lock. A while passes before a light squeak alerts them that they are not alone.
Tiny Angelique Greene stands at the end of the hall, flushed blood red and apologizing profusely. "I'm sorry! I didn't think anyone was - and I - and -"
"It's okay," Kurt says breathlessly, jumping to his feet. "We probably should be going anyway, right Blaine?"
"Y-yeah," Blaine stutters, accepting Kurt's offered hand and rising to his feet as well. "We'll be going now."
The two dart down the opposite end of the hall, a silent agreement to find their dressing room before experiences further awkward situations. They find the room with ease and Blaine's hand is on the doorknob when suddenly the door swings open and Tina is pulling the two in roughly.
"You're just in time!" Rachel says, clapping her hands together. "Tina had an idea and we all want to talk before Mr. Schue gets here."
The two look around and find everyone present except for the chaperones. They are forced to sit down by Tina, who is as excited as Kurt has ever seen her (without the influence of alcohol, at least). She grins and stands back.
"Okay, you know how Mr. Schue said this was the time to have fun? Well, we're going to wear black eyeliner," Tina says, smiling.
"How is that a big change from the usual?" Mike asks, confused by his girlfriend bizarre announcement.
"All of us."
There are a few protests from the other males, but they are quickly hushed by their respective girlfriends or a scathing look from Tina.
"Not that it's a bad idea, Tina, but why?" Kurt asks, raising a perfectly arched eyebrow.
"To be different, why else?" Rachel answers, a mad sparkle in her eyes. "We can stand out and show these people what we're made of."
Finn gives a sheepish look when his brother casts him a questioning glance. He has no power over his girlfriend to speak of. Whatsoever.
"Do we have a choice?" Artie asks with a sigh, vocalizing the question on most everyone's mind.
"No," Tina and Rachel snap in unison. Rachel gives a sweet - albeit insane - grin and continues, "So don't try to fight us."
There is a mumbled consent among the group, and soon each male was being grabbed up by a female to properly apply the offending cosmetic. When Brittany tries to take Kurt's hand, he quickly stops her.
"I can manage, thank you," he says, pulling back gently. "I was Officer Krupke, if you recall."
"I'm good, too," Blaine says, fending off Santana's sharply manicured fingernails on his arm. "Tony taught me a lot about love and eyeliner."
Santana fixes the two with a long and withering look, then passes her Urban Decay pallet and a precision brush over. "Here. It's easier on sensitive skin."
Kurt raises an eyebrow. "Thank you, Satan…?"
"Oh, get over yourself. We don't need you having some kind of bizarre allergic reaction on stage that makes you blow your solo and cost us major popularity points. Your little fan girls won't love you so much if your eyes are more swollen than Finn's breasts."
A shout of protest from Finn is ignored by all.
"Just be careful where you put it. It's a bitch to remove."
Kurt and Blaine sit in stunned silence as Brittany and Santana walk to their respective area to help one another with their makeup. After a moment, they turn to one another to do the same without vocalizing. They know each other well enough, and Blaine's eyes droop before Kurt has even opened the pallet. With the steady hand and the precision of an artist, Kurt draws a line of black perfectly along his boyfriend's lash line, then wings it out slightly and accents the corners. After repeating the treatment on the other eye, Blaine opens his eyes.
"Perfect," Kurt says, smiling at his work.
Blaine holds his hands out for the pallet and brush, then Kurt closes his own eyes. Blaine draws a thick line against the upper lash line of his love, then a thinner one along the bottom. The effect his stunning against the crystalline color of Kurt's eyes, and when he opens them, Blaine is staring transfixed into them.
"Beautiful," Blaine breathes, a tiny shy smile on his face, his cheeks flushed slightly pink. "Have I ever told you I love your eyes?"
"Maybe once or twice," Kurt replies softly, grinning at his boyfriend. "You're not so bad yourself."
"Maybe we should go see if that hallway's evacuated yet," Blaine says in a low voice only Kurt can hear.
The other boy smirks and gives his lover an Eskimo kiss. "I'm not big on exhibitionism."
"I thought getting caught was your kink."
Kurt smacks Blaine in the chest playfully. "Don't even. That's all on you. And besides, getting caught is different than purposely displaying yourself for the world to see."
"Who's displaying what for the world to see?" Puck asks from a few feet away, sporting what looks like a black eye, but what is actually the overzealous application of eyeliner by the hand of Quinn.
"Quinn is displaying her utter lack of makeup application ability," Kurt quickly retorts, blushing scarlet nonetheless.
Quinn casts a glare at Kurt. "I can do it to myself just fine, thank you. Noah squirms."
Blaine turns a very interesting shade of maroon before bursting out with a joyous, "That's what she said!"
Quinn and Kurt fix him with bitch-faces while Puck laughs along, holding his fist out to Blaine.
Kurt rolls his eyes and mutters, "I'm dating a twelve year old."
"Isn't that illegal?" Brittany asks, gasping when she hears him from across the room. "And what about Blaine? I thought you two had sweet dolphin love!"
"I mean - he is totally suave and romantic one minute and completely juvenile the next."
"I like Suave, it's cheap and smells good, and Lord Tubbington loves how my hair tastes when I use it."
Santana fixes her girlfriend with a loving - albeit humored - smile. "No, honey, he means fancy."
"Oh. Then I agree! Fancy dolphins don't make 'that's what she said' jokes!" Brittany says, pouting at the curly haired boy. "Only dumb little baby dolphins do, and you're little but you're not dumb."
"Thank you, Britt. Blaine is being immature," Kurt says, flicking his pouting boyfriend on the nose.
Blaine huffs and keeps a serious expression for a long moment, then starts laughing. "I'm sorry. But really, who else was going to do it? Puck was already being tortured by Quinn."
Suddenly the door opens, and Mr. Schue and Miss Pillsbury are taking in the sight of the teenagers. Mr. Schue smiles widely. "This is the kind of thing I was talking about! The little things to be unique and unified, and to have fun. Who knows, maybe we can take this look to nationals."
The entire groups is abuzz for the remainder of their wait time and warm up. After giving one of the most fun performances they ever have, they all run back to their changing room together, clinging to one another's arms, hands, and coattails. Blaine and Kurt manage to hang back for a moment from the others, clinging to one another and giggling the loudest of the group.
Blaine sneaks a kiss to Kurt's cheek, squeezing their interlocked fingers. "This has been the most fun I've ever had giving a show."
Kurt grins widely, then resumes their argument from so long before, "You're still immature."
"You like it," Blaine says, leaning forward until lips are a breath away from his boyfriend's.
"I'll never admit it," Kurt murmurs with a smirk, his hot breath tickling his boyfriend's lips.
"I really like black eyeliner."
"Me, too."
Kurt and Blaine close the distance between one another and share a sweet kiss, the smiles never leaving their faces.
Reality has never tasted so sweet.
A/N: The process and setup of the competition is based on real life show choir competitions of which I am an active member. They are some of the most fun you could have, and I highly suggest attending one if you have the chance - even being in one if your school has a show choir.
I don't have a beta for my many oneshots which will be published more frequently as time passes, hopefully, but if you are willing and are a quick worker (one or two days processing at most) contact me via PM or review.
Silly Lilly Malvina